Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart would have been 250
years old this year, and chances are, if he was still alive….well, he’d be quite shriveled and green. But he’s not. As
we all know, he kicked pounded out his last chord and went to the great concert hall in the sky many years ago. But
that doesn’t keep the Austrians, or the Viennese for that matter, from making a big to do about his quarter millennia
of cultural impact. And so this New Year, if you happen to be in Vienna (and why wouldn’t you be?) you can catch all
the hilarious hijinx Mozart-a-rama fun by attending the Imperial Ball in the
Hofburg Palace. Woo hoo! Let me hear it! Pump your fist in the air! It’s an old place, so things might be a little
musty around the Mozart Ball. And you can bet with all the dancing going on the Mozart Ball will be quite sweaty, too.
But there’s stil nothing quite like a Mozart Ball, I can tell you. Even one that is this old. So raise a glass of
champagne, don your best duds, and check out the Mozart Ball.
Boston’s Freedom Trail
Personally, one of my favorite things to do in Boston is drink beer and eat fish. I love the city’s little pubs and
the narrow colonial-era streets. But if you want top get historical, I can’t really think of a city in the states that
offers more opportunity to walk and explore the nation’s rich heritage. In Boston, a good place to start is the
Freedom Trail. The trail (which is really sort of a bricked/painted sidewalk)
leaves the Boston Common and takes you past and along 16 historic sites.
Among them are the Paul Revere House, the old Burial Grounds (where some of our forefathers now Rest in Peace), the
site of the Boston Massacre where Crispus took one for the team, and the Old North Church. Together this assembly of
historical places are strung together into a kind of necklace to the past, our past, that tells the story of Boston in
the Revolutionary period. So give it a stroll…then go sit down and have a beer.
Travel + Leisure: Rwanda (After)
It’s been somewhere around 11 years since the one of the world’s most horrible and
fastest genocide took place in Rwanda. 800,000 of the country’s minority group, the
Tutsis, were murdered in 100 days. If you’ve seen Hotel Rwanda you
probably know the details are far too gruesome and horrifying to think about, but the country now has an even more
interesting aftermath. The very bad news is there are approximately 250,000 rape victims which most have been infected
by HIV and 95,000 children orphaned. However, the Hutus and the Tutsis seem to reside in the country fine together
although some tensions exist, they hire each other for employment and work hard on forgiving and forgetting. In
short, a nation with so many social problems probably doesn’t get the kind of advertising for
tourism it may deserve.
This piece found in
Travel +
Leisure by Melanie Thernstrom is incredible and very well-written for those attempting to keep up
with the latest travel bits. Getting past the initial spine-chilling, must-note details of the country’s past
can be tough at first, but looking into the country’s future, things are all the brighter.
Somewhat. The focus of the article is if the people can now live together peacefully, then why can’t
luxury hotels, memorials intact with genocide sites and wildlife-rich national parks exist together? Melanie
points out some awesome attractions to see while touring the country like the Gisakura Tea Estate, National
Museum, and the Parc National des Volcans. All very much worth your undivided attention.
Borat’s Troubles
I meant to post about this Ali G/Borat business when I first heard the news, but must have gotten preoccupied with
something else. The fact is, though, this is really funny when you think about it. Absurd and funny.
Some of you probably know the character of Borat, played by Sacha Baron Cohen as part of the Ali G show. Cohen, who
also plays the goofy, intentionally ignorant HipHip impresario Ali G is being sued by the Kazakh government for
portraying them as sexist, racist, stupid louts who sing songs like “throw the Jew down the well” (or, wait, was that
the Stones? Oh well, nevermind). Of course, nothing helps spread slanderous and offensive (and, you have to
admit, pretty damn funny) comments better than publicity. And so what was kind of a minor comedic phenomenon, has
gained international prominence. Cohen, who is Jewish, has responded to the Kazakh efforts by
assuming the character of Borat and saying: “I like to state, I have no connection with Mr Cohen and fully support my
government’s position to sue this Jew.” What a crazy crazy world.
About Arnold the World-Class Journalist (and Brazilian Butts)
It was Worldhum who first drew my attention to the comments made by
Califohhrnia Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger about Brazilian women…rather the butts of Brazilian women. The comments
were published way back when in the LA Times, but were allegedly from a video shot with Arnold when he was younger and
has less concern for his political viability. Well, thanks to the wonders of the Web, it
seems some of that video is now online.
I for one was impressed. Both the Arnold’s delivery and his thoughtful analysis. He really takes the time to
understand his subject and to appreciate the nuances and complexities of a foreign culture. He would have made a fine
journalist.